Safety device for cutting-machines.



L. SGHLESINGER.

SAFETY DEVICE FOR CUTTING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED JULY14,1914.

1 121 046 Patented Dec. 15,1914.

LEO sc nLnsInGnn, on NEW YORK, N. Y.

SAFETY DEVICE FOR CUTTING-MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 15, 191 i.

Application filed July 14, 1914. Serial No. 850,859.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEO Scrrmsmonn, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Safety Devices for Cutting and Similar Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a device for protecting the operators of cutting and similar machines.

In machines for cutting, such as are used for cutting sheet tin cardboard and other stock, the operator feeds the stock between the lower stationary and the upper movable cutting members, generally into contact with a gage; and he then operates a treadle to force down the upper knife, or to throw on the power for it to perform the operation. Very often the same sheet is cut sev' eral times until the last out is made close to the edge which is held by the operator. Of course there are other ways of using such machines, but this is given as one example of procedure. \Vhen the operator advances the sheet between the knives he is apt to misjudge the position of the cutting line because the lower knife is more or less covered by the stock; or he is liable to misjudge the margin which will remain for him to hold with his fingers when the cut is to be made near the edge of the sheet; and, as a result, he is apt to bring his fingers so far up as to place them in the path of the knife and as a result they are cut by the knives. In stamping presses the same thing happens regarding the upper and lower die members, but there the fingers are more apt to be crushed than out.

My invention is to provide a device which will eliminate such accidents.

The objects of my invention are, to provide means for this purpose which will be very simple in construction, easily and inexpensively applied to any and all machines of the class referred to, and which will opcrate in the simplest and most efficient manner.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device which will not obstruct the work and which will cause no appreciable loss of stock.

In the drawings forming part of this application, Figure 1 is an elevation of a well known form of cutting machine, having my improvements applied thereto, Fig. 2 is a sectional view thereof, taken on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1 and showing the knife in the upper position, and Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the knife and guard in the lower position. Fig. f is an end elevation of the guard.

The machine shown herein by way of GX- ample comprises end standards 1, 2 which support the table or bed 3 over the top +l of which the stock is fed to the cutting members.

There is a treadle 5 which rocks on the trunnions 6 in the standards, to which treadle are connected the links 7. The upper ends of these links are fulcrumed to downward extensions 8 at each end. of the re ciprocating head 9. This head is drawn upwardly by the springs 10 which are connected with the lateral arms 11 of the head and with the upper extensions 12 of the standards. of the treadle the head is moved clownwardly, and upon the release of the treadle, it, together with the head, is returned by the springs 10.

The lower knife or blade 12 is shown stationarily attached to the rear edge of the bed 3; and the stock is fed along the bed and over the edge of this blade to whatever extent is necessary to make the desired cut, and a gage may be arranged against which the stock may be fed. The upper and mow able knife blade 13 is attached to the for ward side of the head 9 by the screws 141- in the usual manner. When. the head 9is lowered, the upper knife blade cooperates with the lower knife blade to cut or shear the stock in two.

The guard here shown comprises a plate or blade 16; preferably of metal and sufficiently thin as not to cause any great waste of stock. This plate is attached so as to move with the upper knife blade, preferably by being secured to the movable head. For this purpose I prefer to arrange several slots 17 in the plate at different positions thercalong and directed up and down in the plate. Screws or bolts 18 passing through these slots and entering the head above the knife secure the plate, loosely, to the head. The plate lies close to or against the front face of the movable knife blade, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The parts are so arranged that when the head is raised to its upper position for the operator to feed the stock, the plate 16 is At each. down ard movement as the movable knife blade. That is to say,

when the head is in its uppermost position,

the plate is so supported that its lower edge is above the bed, but below the plane of the bottom edge of the movable knife blade.

In operation, the stock is fed over the bed 3 and is passed between the blades while the head and upper knife are in raised position. During this operation the operator can not pass his fingers under the upper knife while grasping the edge of the stock, because the plate 16 is sufficiently low to guard against it, though it is raised enough to permit the stock to be fed. Since the plate 16 may be comparatively thin, the fingers may be moved up as closely to the knife as is safe, so that the stock may be held close and may be cut close to the edge. When the stock has been fed into position, the oper: ator depresses the treadle 5 to lower the head. As the head descends, the guard comes to rest on the top of the stock, and the head continues to go down until the upper knife passes through the stock, thus severing it. l/Vhen the treadle is released the head rises again, but the guard 16 does not rise at once, but remains down until the bolts 1S-reach the upper ends of the slots 17 and then the guard rises with the head. The guard 1 comes down below the upper knife until it meets the stock, so that the operator cannot get his hands or fingers under the knife because there is not space enough at'any time beneath the guard. It will be noted that the lower edge 19 of the guard extends across the part of the knife edge where the operator is at work and that it shields the knife edge at all times.

The guard rises automatically at each operation with the head and falls by gravity, and there is nothing in the device to get out of order. Even if the bolts 18 were to break, the guard would fall in front of the knife and the operator would be warned of the condition.

The invention is not limited in use to astraight knife, since the knife may be curved and the guard may be curved accordingly. Nor is the invention limited to use on cut ting machines. manner on an impression machine, such as It may be used in the same a die press. In Fig. 4: I have shown a side elevation of the dies and head of a stamping press having a device attached thereto. Herein there is a circular lower and stationary die member 20, a head 21, and a movable die 22 carried thereby. The guard 23 is attached to the head as in the previous form, by bolts 18. The guard is shaped to correspond with the die 22 which, in the showing is circular; but, if desired, the guard may only protect the front of the die where the operators hands usually are during the feeding. The guard protects the operator from the die in the same manner; that the guard in Figs. 1 to 3 protects the operator from the knife, and it operates in the same manner.

The present device may be very easily and inexpensively applied to all machines now in use as it'requires no modification of the machine proper.

Having described my invention, claim is:

what I 1. In a cutting or similar machine, upper? and lower members cooperating to affect the stock, a movable head carrying the upper member, and a guard movable with the head during its upward movement and movable downwardly ward movement of the head, said guard being adapted to shield the lower edge of the upper member in its several positions.

2. In a c'uttlng or similar machine, upper by gravity during the down-1".

and lower cutting or die members, cooperat-" ing to affect the stock, a movable head carrying the upper member, a guard plate conforming to and lying close to or against the front of the upper member, a bolt and slot connection between said guard plate and? said head,arranged whereby the guard plate will project below said upper member while the latter is in raised position and during its downward movement, said guard plate being arranged to shield the lower edge off.

the upper member and adapted to fall freely by gravity when said head and upper member descend and to contact with and be stopped by the stock.

Signed in the city, New York, this 9th day of July, 1914.

LEO SGHLESINGER. Witnesses lsADon GOLDENBERG, CHARLES G. I-InNsLnY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 0.

county and State of? 

